Potions & wizards…

I hear the word elixir and instantly I am transported into the wizarding world.
Harry Potter first entered my life when I was pregnant with my twin boys and I read the first book.Instantly I was hooked and there was no escape; this passion was passed to my boys and from when they were toddlers, all things Harry Potter related became an integral part of our lives. Nights were spent spellbound, listening to the incredible, ever changing character voices of Stephen Fry on the audio books and often sleep time was just that little bit later with both Mum and Dad desperate to know what happened next and succumbing to the pleas of ” just one more chapter!” We may have been robbing them of a little sleep, but the bonding, family time in the magical world more than made up for it! Hours were spent by my boys reenacting various scenes and adding their own improvisations and it amused me greatly that whilst one was of course Harry, the other chose to be Hermione, preferring to be the smart one of the opposite gender rather than Ron! Spells were cast on a daily basis and they spent hours in the bathroom concocting various potions and elixirs with ingredients from their chemistry set and various items from my pantry. Herbs and spices needed constant replenishing and much to my husband’s disappointment , this was not due to my gourmet cooking!
When they were 7, we travelled to England and of course had to visit various locations where HP scenes had been filmed, and the boys were enraptured. ( unfortunately this was pre iPad and kindle days and when picking books to pack they picked the largest volumes of Harry Potter to take and re read, although at least they could swap!)
We visited Egypt after this and although they were fascinated by all it had to offer and relished seeing tombs and mummies and learning about ancient Egypt, the small glimpse into the great hall in Hogwarts remained the highlight of the trip.
Quidditch games, PlayStation games, films, dress ups, plays, potion making; the list of HP activities undertaken in our house is endless and it culminated in a Grand Finale when at age 15 the boys, their Dad and I attended the midnight premiere screening of the final film. It was a special night indeed and when those final haunting notes of the music faded to silence everyone sat shellshocked. It was such a surreal feeling; a real sense of loss of a beloved member of the family.
Harry Potter and the wizarding world, thank you for the magic you put in our lives and being part of our family…